


For All the Span of His Days

by Silvials



Series: Tumblr Ficlets [3]
Category: Captive Prince - C. S. Pacat
Genre: M/M, The Summer Palace fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-18
Updated: 2021-02-18
Packaged: 2021-03-14 03:34:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29536200
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silvials/pseuds/Silvials
Summary: In which Laurent picks flowers, brings Damen breakfast, and discovers the extent of his spice tolerance in the Summer Palace.
Relationships: Damen/Laurent (Captive Prince)
Series: Tumblr Ficlets [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2127039
Comments: 14
Kudos: 76





	For All the Span of His Days

Their first day at the Summer Palace felt so surreal that Laurent almost thought it was a product of his intense yearning to be reunited with Damen. It wouldn’t be surprising, given the fact that his nights had become more restless the moment he and Damen had parted ways, but when he opened his eyes, he was greeted with the sight of marble archways, the sound of lapping waves, and the familiar weight of Damen’s arm draped across his chest. The golden light filtering through the windows lent a magical quality to their chambers, but Laurent was certain that he wasn’t dreaming because Damen felt real and solid next to him.

For the first time, they didn’t have any duties awaiting them, so Laurent closed his eyes and tried to drift back to sleep. It ended up being a doomed effort. Laurent thought he had already grown accustomed to Akielos’ climate during his month-long stay in Ios, but with Damen plastered against his back and the sheets pooled around his waist, he was starting to feel uncomfortably warm.

Laurent didn’t have the heart to wake Damen up. He attempted to wriggle out of his embrace without jostling him too much, but Damen unconsciously held him tighter when he sensed the motion. Laurent let out a huff and proceeded to carefully push Damen’s arm away. The second attempt was more successful, although he nearly rolled straight onto the ground in the process of freeing himself from the sheets. Laurent peered up at the bed to check if Damen had seen his ungraceful flailing and found that he managed to sleep through the whole ordeal. Laurent spent a few moments simply admiring him before he picked himself off the floor and went looking for his chiton.

Once he was dressed, he crept out the door and wandered down the halls without a particular destination in mind. He hadn’t seen much of the palace yet. He had explored a bit upon his arrival, but he mostly stayed on the balcony because of his eagerness to see Damen again. And while Damen had given him a cursory tour already, he had been far too distracted by their lovemaking to properly admire his surroundings. His aimless wandering led him to another garden. This one had a fountain at the center instead of a statue, and it was sprawling with an array of colorful flowers. There was an elderly gardener tending to the bushes, who smiled timidly at Laurent when he saw him approach.

“Can I pick them?” Laurent asked.

“Of course, Your Highness,” the gardener said and showed him the proper way to pick flowers.

Laurent collected one of each color, delighting in the simple act. He had never done this before. In fact, he couldn’t even remember the last time he had strolled through the gardens in Arles. There was always a risk of getting leered at by drunk courtiers or encountering someone fucking their pet, so he would much rather spend his leisure time shut away in his chambers instead of lounging outside.

He didn’t have to worry about any of that here. The morning was quiet and calm with only the company of birdsong and the gentle breeze teasing his hair. He thanked the gardener once he was satisfied with his bouquet and continued to explore the rest of the palace. Along the way, he was greeted by the scent of freshly baked bread, and he absently followed it until he found himself in the kitchen.

It was easily the liveliest place in the palace. While the gardens were serene, the kitchen was rife with a sense of organized chaos as the cooks rushed back and forth to add finishing touches to the dishes laid out on the countertops. They all paused when they saw Laurent and bowed to him in greeting. Laurent nodded at them in return and told them to carry on with what they were doing.

“Your breakfast is already prepared,” one of them said. “Would you like to request anything, Your Highness?”

Laurent eyed the dishes spread out before him and found that he couldn’t recognize any of them. “I’m quite unfamiliar with Akielon cuisine. I’ll just have whatever Damianos is having.”

“Alright, Your Highness. Would you prefer to take you meal in the great hall or in your chambers?”

“In our chambers, please.”

“We’ll have it brought up to you shortly, Your Highness.”

“Thank you,” Laurent said, and then upon second thought, he added. “Or I could bring it up myself.”

The cooks were predictably scandalized. “That won’t be necessary, Your Highness. We could always ask a servant.”

“No, I insist. I was on my way back to our chambers anyway,” Laurent said and offered what he hoped was a reassuring smile. “You could show me how.”

The cooks seemed hesitant, but they couldn’t exactly refuse a request from a prince, so they moved the plates onto a serving tray and instructed Laurent on the best way to carry it.

It proved to be a bigger challenge than he thought. The soups threatened to spill onto the tray at the slightest movement, and Laurent was so concentrated on balancing the contents of the tray that he almost ran into a wall at some point. He arrived at their chambers unscathed, and by some miracle, he also managed to open the door while cradling the tray in one arm.

Damen was already awake by then. He was sitting up against the pillows, leafing through the book that Laurent had left on the nightstand. Damen smiled when he saw him and raised a brow in surprise at the sight of the food and the flowers.

“I was wondering where you had gone,” he said. “For a moment, I thought I had left you unsatisfied, and you ran away at the first opportunity.”

Laurent rolled his eyes as he approached. “As if you could ever leave anyone unsatisfied.”

Damen was already tugging Laurent towards the bed even before he could set the tray on the nightstand. “At least let me put it down first,” he chided, then grudgingly allowed Damen to pull him into an embrace when the food was no longer at risk of spilling everywhere.

“And what is this? A reward for my performance?” Damen asked.

“Of course. You’ll need sustenance to maintain that stamina after all,” Laurent agreed. “And I like spoiling you.”

“It’s very much appreciated,” Damen said as he plucked one of the blue flowers from the bouquet and tucked it behind Laurent’s ear. They kissed lazily on the bed for a few moments, simply relishing the slow morning, but Damen stopped before it could lead any further and suggested they should eat first while the food was still warm.

Akielon food was still a mystery to Laurent. He had mostly breads and dips while he was in Ios, but most of the food in the Summer Palace seemed to have come straight from the ocean. Some of them looked mildly unappetizing, but Laurent ate everything Damen fed to him and savored the different textures and bursts of flavor. The final dish had oysters that were smothered in bright red sauce. Damen said it was one of his favorites, so Laurent didn’t hesitate to try it.

Biting into it sent a pleasant tingle across his tongue, but then the tingle grew into a burning sensation that travelled straight down his throat. It sent Laurent into a coughing fit and made his eyes water.

Damen stared at him, panicked at first, but his concern was eventually replaced by amusement when he realized Laurent was just unable to handle the heat.

“You should have warned me it was spicy,” Laurent said. He knew he was whining already, but he couldn’t help it because it hurt even to talk.

“I didn’t think it was that bad,” Damen replied in defense, although he couldn’t quite keep the laughter out of his tone.

Laurent scowled at him. “What?”

“Your face has gone red. It’s adorable.”

Laurent continued to scowl at him, undeterred by his compliments, and Damen laughed openly at his expression before leaning over to kiss him. Kissing only made the tingles worse, and Laurent squirmed away immediately.

“It’s _hot.”_

“Alright, alright,” Damen relented and handed Laurent a cup of water, although he didn’t look particularly guilty for delighting in Laurent’s suffering.

Laurent drained the cup in a few gulps, and Damen refilled it for him immediately.

“I’m sorry,” Damen said, gathering Laurent into his arms and kissing him on the cheek this time. “I’ll make it up to you. We could go riding.”

Damen knew him well, but Laurent wasn’t about to give in to him just yet. He pretended to consider his offer before nodding. “Shall we race?”

“Sure, but I won’t go easy on you.”

“Don’t you feel bad for nearly burning by tongue off?”

“It wasn’t _that_ spicy,” Damen insisted. “And besides, it doesn’t impede your ability to ride.”

“Fine,” Laurent said with a put-upon sigh, “You wouldn’t be able to beat me anyway.”

“Am I forgiven, then?”

“Of course not. I won’t let you off so quickly.”

“I bet you would change your mind once we arrive at the stables.”

Damen ended up being right. There was a new horse waiting for him at the stables, and Laurent knew then that it was impossible for him to stay mad Damen.

**Author's Note:**

> There is absolutely no plot to this, I just wanted to write about Laurent being cute in the Summer Palace. This fandom has rendered me incapable of writing anything other than fluff, but I'm not mad about it.
> 
> Comments and kudos are very much appreciated.
> 
> Also, feel free to drop by and say hi on [Tumblr](http://silvials.tumblr.com/). I have a lot more ficlets over there.


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